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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Undersea Quilt

By the time you read this, I expect to be recovering from my elbow surgery. I'm taking this opportunity to catch up on a few blog posts I've been meaning to write for a while.

Take a look at this beauty! It's currently the WIP that I am most excited about. A few months back, I organized a block swap for the members of the Triangle Modern Quilt Guild. We all started with a common set of fabrics (a selection of Momo's "Odyssea" for Moda Fabrics) and then made blocks for one another based upon each member's specific request. I asked for square-in-square blocks inspired by Denyse Schmidt's wonky style.

Each member was allowed to add in fabrics (from any line) that they felt was a good coordinate for their blocks. I had a really great time shopping for fabrics from across the shop that I thought would look good with the Odyssea prints, and I loved picking specific fabrics that I thought would further the underwater feel of the quilt.

I got back some wonderful blocks from the talented quilters in my guild. I wasn't quite sure what to do with them, but after assessing the large stash of fabrics I still had on hand, I decided to give each block a 2.5" frame to really highlight each block. I think it was this decision that elevated this quilt top from "really like" to "really really love"!

The only problem was that, at 12 blocks laid out in a 3 x 4 grid, the quilt seemed kind of small to me. Don't forget, I am over 6'4" tall, so what might be a throw quilt to some is barely even a lap cover for me! Because I loved the way this quilt was turning out (and also because I severely over-bought fabric and had a TON of leftover cuts), I decided more blocks were needed.

I turned to my fabulous Twitter followers and put out a plea: would anyone want to make a block for my quilt? I was hoping to get 4 takers so that I could add one more row to the quilt top. What I didn't expect was the flood of responses I got from quilters around the world who were selflessly willing to make me a block. Based upon the response I received, I think I will be able to nearly double the size of my quilt!

Some of the new blocks have already started to arrive. They're not pictured here yet, but they are AWESOME. I'm so very excited to receive the remaining blocks and finish this quilt up. It's going to be one of my favorites -- not only because it's just so cool, but because it will be made with love by both members of my local guild and also some of my favorite online friends.

Stay tuned -- when I add all of the new additions to the quilt top, I'll post another picture and keep you posted on its progress!

Too cool! Nothing like an unknown (I don't think stranger is right) friend to step up and help out! Gotta love these quilting peeps:0) Sorry to hear about the elbow! I've got a daughter who lives in Raleigh who has fallen a few times in the last few weeks, nothing broken thankfully! Prayers for a speedy recovery. Sarah